I bought a BeoLab 2 and its in the mail.  I'm so excited.  I had one a couple years ago, sold it, and regretted selling it ever since.  Its going to be hooked up with a pair of BeoLab 3s. Connected to them is an Airport Express streaming iTunes.  I had to use a headset volume control to attenuate the signal otherwise the Airport will blow the speakers.  Cheers everybody!

Congrats on your purchase.

Congrats for your new BL2! I hope your neighbours will like it as much as you seem to do!

Invite the neighbours over for a little listening session. Congrats.

Thanks everybody.  I'll have to be careful.  I generally wait till my neighbors aren't home.  We do seem to have a tacit agreement.  Sometimes they are noisy and its cool.  Sometimes I'm noisy and its cool.

A quick note for you, so that you can get a jump.  You are going to NEED a relay to turn the BeoLab 2 on for you.  The BL-2 doesn't have a 'line input' setting like the 3's.  Here in the US we have a 'locally produced'item (#0898127); but surely they offer something similar in other markets as well.

Of course, since you had one before, you may well have known all this!  

Russ

Hi Russ.  Thanks so much for letting me know.  My prior Beolab 2 was set up conventionally with other B&O products and was not set up with an Airport as I plan to do now.  I was thinking just plug the Airport into the Beolab, it would sense a signal, and bang, I'm in business.  Apparently not.  Is that part available in the B&O store or can you give me a source?

Glad I'm on this forum.  I may have returned my little "bowling ball" as defective.  Have a great weekend.

Hi Kevin,

any US B&O shop should be able to sell you one.  If they don't stock it, they can order it in using the part number I gave you above.  If you can't find one locally, I might know where one is.  

Thanks very much!  

I've got this combination and I think they work very well together.  I had a Velodyne sub which is a more superior Sub by most accounts but suprisingly it didn't work in combination with the BL3s as well as the BL2.  I figured that it was the crossover settings in the BS3 that had the BL2 sounding more "musical" in this particular combination.  When using the bass sparingly I think it's perfect!

I talked to Alex at B&O Union Square (really nice fellow and he remembered me from a couple years back).  He is searching the system for one and to make matters more difficult, the item # might have changed.  He said it would take about 3 weeks.   

-KL

Just to make it more confusing, there is another (additional) way to vastly improve the sound when using an Airport Express: use an external DAC. I use an Apogee MiniDac and the difference between the Airport output and the sound from the external DAC is immense. (A DAC converts the digital signal into analog sound - the Airport Express has one on board, but not a very good one).

Hi muntbeo, and thanks for your input.  Where do I put this in the scheme of things?  Is it connected to the Airport connected to the relay connected to the BL2?  Is this something I can order online?  I'd like to see your setup.  Thanks and regards.  -Kevin

The Airport Express has an output that is capable of analog and digital (optical) signals. I suppose you have your speakers connected with an analog 3,5 mm jackplug. You can connect an external DAC between the Airport Express and your Beolabs. You have to use an optical cable and plug it into the Airport Express.

Well, it arrived!!  I bought the relay from my B&O dealer and set everything up.  It sounds beautiful but there is a buzzing noise coming out of the speakers.  I think its the transformer that's causing the hum.  Will a line conditioner help?  Also, the speakers are always on the "on" position.  I don't think its a very good relay unit.  Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.  Thanks all.

Well, I answered my own question.  I plugged in the transformer too close to the Airport.  I moved the transformer and voila'  (sp?).  There was still a little noise and the speakers still not go into standby when no signal was fed.  I tried a new transformer and the noise was reduced to a level where I would have to hold my ear to the speaker to hear it.  Still no standby so I'll have to manually switch it off (plugged into a surge strip).

Kevin:

Well, I answered my own question.  I plugged in the transformer too close to the Airport.  I moved the transformer and voila'  (sp?).  There was still a little noise and the speakers still not go into standby when no signal was fed.  I tried a new transformer and the noise was reduced to a level where I would have to hold my ear to the speaker to hear it.  Still no standby so I'll have to manually switch it off (plugged into a surge strip).

turning your beolabs on and off manually isn't the best idea... they'd be happier to stay on (regarding the electronics lifetime).

Oh.  Thanks very much Dave.  It became much more complicated than I anticipated rather than just plug and play!  And the wiring wasn't easy gathering it all up and wrapping them up and running them along the baseboard.  Thanks again.